


You Raise Me Up

by ProblematicPines



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Post-Episode: s04e11 Three Gems and a Baby, Post-Episode: s05e18 A Single Pale Rose, Post-Steven Universe: The Movie, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 08:27:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23348419
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProblematicPines/pseuds/ProblematicPines
Summary: Pearl’s dispassionate, unbreaking expression turned into one of growing shock when a brilliant pink light illuminated the bedroom she’d been standing in for most of the day. A dazzling, familiar light that cast shimmering rays between the slats of the crib, illuminating the multitude of toys scattered throughout the room.The light was emanating from the gemstone embedded in the baby’s stomach. It was a light that brought tears to Pearl’s eyes, but these weren’t tears of despair any longer.They were tears of...joy? Relief?Whatever it was, it was enough for Pearl’s mouth to crack into the smallest of smiles.She stared down at the baby, who was completely unaware of the blinding pink light surrounding him, and was innocently giggling away as he played with the hand he’d successfully managed to grab hold of.“Hey...Steven,” Pearl whispered quietly, a tear rolling down her cheek. It fell, noiselessly landing on the gemstone.
Relationships: Pearl & Steven Universe
Comments: 5
Kudos: 53





	You Raise Me Up

A tiny baby mewled in his crib, even tinier hands reaching up and grasping for something to hold. Standing above said baby was Pearl, who was looking down at the baby with what one could only discern to be complete apathy. But she was really completely dissociated; looking down at this human with her pale-blue eyes made her feel like she was merely looking down upon herself.

It was a surreal feeling, and not one she’d experienced in all her time being alive. It was a hollow emptiness that begged for something to fill the whistling void in her form, but Pearl knew that nothing would ever fill that void.

Not since Rose died.

That was the term that humans, or a certain human, used to describe the process of withering away into nothingness. Gems didn’t die. Not really. They lost their forms, yes, but they could just as easily come back if given enough time.

Shattering was different. It was like having your consciousness being split into countless different pieces, all of them yearning to come back together, all of them screaming into a void that refused to listen.

That’s how Pearl felt right now.

But this was different for Rose. Everything about Rose just had to be different.

She hadn’t been shattered, she hadn’t lost her form, she had died.

She well and truly wasn’t coming back, and though Pearl knew this, she refused to accept it.

Pearl knew this, because she was staring down at her reflection in the facets of the pink Gemstone embedded squarely in the navel of the baby in the crib.

The gemstone, the Diamond, that belonged to the Gem she’d lived thousands of years alongside, whom she’d loved with all her heart and soul.

Her eyes were reddened from crying for months on end, with dark bags underneath them that made her look almost as old as she was. Her hair was a mess, most unlike her usual perfect and pristine self. Overall, Pearl was a weary, wordless mess.

The baby, completely unaware of who this teary-eyed stranger was, gurgled a greeting up at her. His hair, though dark, was as rich with bouncing curls as Rose’s, and his face had the same angelic smile. Drool hung out of the baby’s mouth, and he reached up his tiny hands towards Pearl. A squeaky giggle, and Pearl found herself mindlessly reaching a quivering, pale hand into the crib.

This was the first time she’d moved in ages. Time didn’t matter to a Gem.

Her hand shakily descended into the crib, and the baby clutched up to meet hers. His hands were much too small to hold hers, but he managed to squeeze his little fists around Pearl’s pointer finger.

Cooing, the baby pulled Pearl’s hand down to his face, which he inspected with big, round, curious eyes. Pearl allowed all this to happen without so much as changing her expression; she still stared wordlessly down at the infant with half-lidded eyes. A few tears ran down her cheeks, but she’d cried so many that she didn’t even know she was crying at all.

This human baby mewled with joy as he played with Pearl’s hand, inspecting each slim finger and pushing them apart with his tiny kicking feet. Drool landed on her skin, but she paid no mind to it.

Pearl’s dispassionate, unbreaking expression turned into one of growing shock when a brilliant pink light illuminated the bedroom she’d been standing in for most of the day. A dazzling, familiar light that cast shimmering rays between the slats of the crib, illuminating the multitude of toys scattered throughout the room.

The light was emanating from the gemstone embedded in the baby’s stomach. It was a light that brought tears to Pearl’s eyes, but these weren’t tears of despair any longer.

They were tears of...joy? Relief?

Whatever it was, it was enough for Pearl’s mouth to crack into the smallest of smiles.

She stared down at the baby, who was completely unaware of the blinding pink light surrounding him, and was innocently giggling away as he played with the hand he’d successfully managed to grab hold of.

“Hey...Steven,” Pearl whispered quietly, a tear rolling down her cheek. It fell, noiselessly landing on the gemstone.

\--

“Hey, Steven!” Pearl called with her usual bravado as she warped into the beach house. She didn’t see Garnet or Amethyst anywhere in the house, but she did see Steven playing video games in his bedroom.

Said child came bounding down the stairs as soon as he heard the familiar thrumming energy of the warp pad being activated.

“PEARL!” he yelled excitedly. He came rushing over, full of boundless energy, like always. He leaped up onto the shining warp pad and embraced his adoptive mother in a tight, loving embrace, who returned it with as much loving vigor as he did. Pearl did have to stoop a fair bit in order to reach Steven’s height, but she didn’t mind.

She didn’t mind much about Steven these days.

“I’m so glad you’re back!” Steven barked. His curls bounced when he hopped from foot to foot, a deliriously-happy smile on his pink face. Pearl noted that he had one of his hands hiding behind his back, and she quirked an eyebrow. A coy smile grew across her face.

“Do you have something for me, Steven?” she inquired.

“And here I thought I was being sneaky,” Steven lamented, half-jokingly. With a flourish and a theatrical “Ta-daaa!”, Steven produced what she’d been holding behind her back the entire time. It was…

“A rock?” Pearl questioned, cocking her head. She inspected the grey, bland-looking pebble. She hoped it had something more fascinating underneath it or something, but it was just plain grey all the way around. It was just a run-of-the-mill stone that she could find on the beach outside. Maybe the real present was inside?   
She’d have to test that theory out later.

Steven nodded enthusiastically. “You saw how excited I was when Garnet got me that rock, so I decided to get you one too! Isn’t it cool?”

“It’s…”

Pearl was about to tell Steven the truth, that this rock wasn’t anything special and that she should really just toss it back onto the beach, but when she saw the grin of excitement on his face, his clenched fists and restless feet, the look of pure love and admiration in his eyes, she felt her feelings melt away. A pleased smile spread over her face, and she knelt down to tightly hug him again.

“It’s wonderful, Steven. Thank you.”

\--

“Thank you, Steven,” Pearl sobbed. Hot, fat tears rolled down her cheeks, dripping from her chin and landing in her lap, soaking through her yellow shorts. “You have no idea how hard it was keeping this from you.”

“I know, Pearl,” Steven murmured, quiet and understanding. He tightened his hug on his caretaker, burying his tear-streaked face into Pearl’s collarbone. “I know. It wasn’t your fault.”

The two of them were sitting on the gigantic stone hand of the Temple that housed the washing machine and drying line. It was night-time, and the beach was deserted.

The sky above them was a deep turquoise, speckled with countless glittering stars that dotted the vast expanse. Dark clouds drifted over the sea, which was fortunately pretty calm tonight. The tide rolled in to take a gentle lap from the pale sand, and it shimmered with the ghostly reflection of the half-moon and the stars. The Temple itself loomed over the beach and the sea, a silent observer of all that took place beneath its stoney eyes.

Pearl and Steven drew apart after a few more seconds of hugging one another, more for the former’s sake than the latter’s. Pearl sniffled, wiping away her tears with the heels of her palms. She straightened her skirt and breathed in deeply, smelling the salty sea air, before exhaling.

Steven watched her, silent but compassionate. He tenderly stroked her arm, letting Pearl know that he was still there, that he will always be there for her, no matter what.

No matter what, he’d always be there for her.

“Thank you again, Steven,” Pearl whispered. The cool night breeze ruffled her hair, causing her to push it out of her face with one trembling hand. “I just...I just had no way to tell you about your mother. About Pink…” Pearl exhaled. “You saw that for yourself.”

Steven nodded slowly. His legs dangled absently over the side of the giant stone hand, swinging back and forth as he refused to meet Pearl’s gaze.

“I just want you to know, Steven,” Pearl insisted quietly. She waited until his gaze lifted from where his Gem was hiding underneath his shirt to meet hers, and when she saw how his lower lip was quivering and his eyes threatened to spill over with tears, she immediately brought him in for a tight embrace.

“I just want you to know,” she repeated, as she rubbed his back and curly hair as he sobbed hot tears into her tunic. “That I wouldn’t have been able to tell you anything if I hadn’t been the person you made me become. You made me believe that I am more than what I can be, and because of you, I feel like I’m finally the person your mother promised she’d make me.”

She pressed a chaste kiss to the top of Steven’s hair, and curled around him protectively, still stroking his back.

“It’s all because of you, Steven, that I’m who I am today.”

\--

“It’s all because of you, Steven, that I’m who I am today.”

The words came out of nowhere. Steven and Pearl had been sitting on the beach for a long while in a comfortable, mutual silence. It had been a few weeks since they’d patched up all the damage Spinel had caused with her Injector, and though there were still a few cracks in the ground that spanned for miles, Beach City had recovered very well from the near-disaster. Tonight was the first time the original Crystal Gems had finally gotten to spend time with one another, and all of them were grateful for it.

Steven had stopped strumming his guitar after softly playing and singing songs all night with the other Crystal Gems as his backing vocals, and they’d just been observing the stars ever since. Garnet and Amethyst had left too, leaving just the two of them by themselves.

It was late evening; the sky was a lovely warm shade of orange, with darker clouds high above and behind them as the sun dipped below the horizon. The tide rolled in and out, leaving behind white foam and the occasional sea shell or pebble (which Steven would pick up and give to Pearl to store away inside her Gem, which housed several other treasures Steven had given her). It was quiet, and peaceful, and the breeze stroked through their hair and clothes.

When Pearl spoke, Steven looked over at her. He smiled.

“How do you mean?” he asked. He settled back on his hands while he listened to his adoptive mother talk.

Pearl chuckled lightly, and she continued.

“Well, you brought my memories back. You reversed the effects of Spinel’s Rejuvenator and helped me rediscover who I was, who I am. Not just that,” she continued, absently tracing pictures in the sand with her finger. “But you also helped me grow. You showed me what I could be, Steven. Who I could be. Your mother...yes, she did want what was best for me. And yes, she did liberate me from Homeworld, along with other Gems. But all that time I thought I was free, I was still just serving her. Under a different title, under a different form.”

Pearl sensed Steven growing a little uncomfortable with who she was talking about, so she immediately got to her point.

“What I’m trying to say is, Steven… Is that because of you being such an amazing person, you’re the reason why I changed for the better. I’m my own person now. Just like how you are your own person. You’re not your mother. You’re not Pink Diamond. You’re Steven Universe.”

“Steven Quartz DeMayo Universe,” Steven corrected with a coy smirk.

Pearl rolled her eyes.

“Yes, you are. And for that, I am eternally grateful. Thank you so much, Steven.”

Steven smiled back, then leaned in to hug Pearl. Pearl hugged him back, wrapping her arms around her son and burying her face in his curls, allowing herself to shed a tear of joy.

“You’re welcome, Pearl.”

\--

_ “You raise me up, _

_ To be more than I can be.” _

-Josh Groban, 2003

**Author's Note:**

> I can't believe Steven Universe is ending tonight.
> 
> This show has been an absolutely gigantic part of my life for the past five years. It's shown me that I shouldn't be afraid of who I am, and to embrace change. It's made me laugh, it's made me cry, it's made me sympathize with its characters and understand the importance of accepting others for who they are, despite their differences.  
> To have it end tonight is simply incredible, and I am so grateful for allowing this show to touch my heart in the way it did.
> 
> This isn't my last SU FanFic, but it will be the last one I'll write before the end of the show.  
> I wanted to write something that perfectly reflected my feelings of the show, as well as tie it in with how Steven allowed other characters to progress in their arcs and become better people.  
> So this is the product of that, and I couldn't be happier with it.
> 
> Thank you so much Steven Universe, for all you've done for me. I'll treasure you in my heart forever.


End file.
